Running, Running, Running

Let us run with patience the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus the author and finisher of [our] faith.



If any [man] will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow me.--Whoever he is of you that forsaketh not all that he hath, he cannot be my disciple.-- Let us therefore cast off the works of darkness.



Every man that striveth for the mastery is temperate in all things. Now they [do it] to obtain a corruptible crown; but we an incorruptible. I therefore so run, not as uncertainly; so I fight, not as one that beateth the air: but I keep under my body, and bring [it] into subjection: lest by any means, when I have preached to others, I myself should be a castaway.-- Brethren, I count not myself to have apprehended: but [this] one thing [I do], forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forward to those things which are before, I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus. Then shall we know, [if] we follow on to know the LORD.



Project:

• Consider what challenge currently lies before you and how you can have the right attitude toward it.
• Briefly think on your past failures only long enough to give them to God and forget them.
  
• Commit to seeking God's goals and running His race from now on.
• Let's make our life goals ones that result in treasure that is eternal and incorruptible.
• We are all running -- let's commit to running in the race where our running means something.
  

Heb 12:1,2 Lu 9:23 14:33 Ro 13:12 1Co 9:25-27 Php 3:13,14 Ho 6:3

This collection of Scriptures is from the Daily Light on the Daily path devotional. For a free daily email of the Daily Light [click here] .

Cutting Off My Nose

The curse was:

“And your brother you shall serve” (Genesis 27:40)

Whether it was or not, Esau felt this word from his father to be a curse. But, in what way did Esau actually serve his brother? Jacob was gone for decades and had no physical influence over him. Yet, Esau was actually under his brother’s power.

Whenever we feel angry, have dark thoughts or speak mean words because of another person, we are giving them power. Power for them to control our own emotions. They may not know or even care. But, as long as we hold a grudge, they are controlling us. We are not free to make decisions that the other person might agree with or that we perceive to be advantageous to this dark shadow in our soul. We may not only refuse to forgive; but may even search for more reasons to hate. Just as with Esau; our decisions, conversations and relationships can be warped by an invisible “Off Limits” barrier. Even our reading, understanding and application of God’s Word will be filtered through this web of negative thoughts, judgments and feelings. Esau was under his brother's power because of Esau’s hatred for Jacob.

Many of us are controlled by ropes that we’ve handed to other people. Certain names raise our blood pressure and send our thoughts spinning into dark paths. To be released from these bonds, we must sincerely forgive. This means we forgive even to the extent that we will genuinely try to help those that we used to resent. Even non-Christians help their friends, but only Christians have been given the power to truly love their enemies. “I can’t or I won’t” are barriers we erect that can stop the flow of God’s power into our life. Who is the loser? It’s not the one we resent. Because of our anger, we may be “cutting off our nose to spite our face.”

Project:

• Make a list of names of those who cause a reaction in your thoughts or feelings.
• Name by name; explicitly tell God that you forgive each person on the list for the specific things they’ve done to you or to others that you love.
• Ask God how you can bless that person; write down an idea by each name.
• Carry out those ideas.

"... And his lord, moved with anger, handed him over to the torturers until he should repay all that was owed him. So shall My heavenly Father also do to you, if each of you does not forgive his brother from your heart."
--

Captive Thoughts

The good news is that we don't have to be "victims" of our relationships. We often choose to let others control our feelings but we don't have to because the reality is that God has given us power over our own thoughts. And, our thoughts are the source of our actions, words and EMOTIONS.

Proverbs 23:7
Whatever a man thinks that is what he is.

It reminds us to consider what thoughts we are thinking. Are they right thoughts, true and noble? If so, our life and feelings will also be right, true and noble. The good news is that we have power, through the Holy Spirit, over our personal thoughts and thus have power over our feelings and the future direction of our life and our relationships. There is also power in God's Word. Let's memorize and meditate on this verse and soak our brains in God's Truth. Let's take our thoughts captive.

Lead, Follow or Get Out of the Way.

“You are a stumbling block to Me; for you are not setting your mind on God’s interests, but man’s.” (Matt 16:23)

Alan Bryan is confined to a wheelchair and has many medical challenges. Yet, he is constantly looking for ways to further God’s interests. He sees his medical problems as opportunities to be a missionary to the local hospital. In another case, the lady who regularly delivered his mail was one of God’s interests and became a convert through her contact with Alan.

Our dishwasher is just over a year old, yet we have had repairmen out to work on it at least five times. My focus has been the dishwasher. But, what about the repairman who, yesterday, told me that this was his fourth visit to our house? God is undoubtedly more interested in the repairman than in the dishwasher. God wants to use the dishwasher to further His interests.

If one has his mind set on God’s interests then he will recognize opportunity where others are blind. One man will be ready to be used by God while the other will only get in His way. It reminds me of the quote, "Lead, follow or get out of the way."

Project:
Let’s pray for God to give us His perspective.
Let’s spend a little time each day asking ourselves, “What are God’s interests in my life and circumstances today?”
Let’s ask God to make His interests the focus of our thoughts.

"Why not go out on a limb? Isn't that where the fruit is?" -- Scully

Ought or Want

Wherefore lift up the hands which hang down, and the feeble knees.
(Heb 12:12)

Years ago, after running a marathon, my knees were so feeble that I had could hardly step over a curb and I had to be extremely careful going down stairs. They soon recovered. But, as the years go by, their strength is in decline. This is partly due to the natural effects of aging and partly due to my lack of consistent exercise.

If our spiritual knees are weak then we will not have the courage or ability to walk in the paths of the Lord. Physically, our strength comes from external resources and fuel. A health expert has said, 'Deep breathing alone has made many a weak man strong and many a sick man well.' Spiritually, our strength also comes from another resource, the Lord Himself. In our soul, we can inhale the truth and gradually replace our wrong ideas. By reading and meditating on God’s word to us, by praying and spiritually breathing in His spirit, we can strengthen our weak knees and feeble arms.

On the surface, personal Bible reading, meditation on God’s Word and prayer seem impotent. In addition, I’ve often been personally inconsistent. Yet, in spite of the inconsistency, this spiritual exercise has helped bring dramatic change that has fundamentally altered the direction of my life and of our family. As an example, most of our children owe their very lives to the results of the changes wrought by prayer. Many of them would not have even been conceived if my attitude toward children had not been changed by the Lord speaking through prayer, His spirit and His word..

Daily spiritual deep breathing will gradually and inevitably have a powerful effect. Then, by exercising our faith and actually doing something out of our comfort zone, we gain strength to take another step forward. Lack of consistent exercise is guaranteed to lead to weakness. Enter into training and discipline. Breathe deeply of Truth, Love and Life! By doing so, we get new ideas, fresh perspectives, and genuine strength to do what we ought instead of what we want.

Project:
Commit to new strength by committing to some spiritual discipline.
Take time to set your alarm earlier.
Prepare a place with a Bible, notebook and pencil.
Share your new commitment with someone else.

An Inexperienced Stranger

An Inexperienced Stranger

And that they may recover themselves out of the snare of the devil, who are taken captive by him at his will. (2 Timothy 2:26)

Who are these who are so easily captured by the devil? Is it some evil person? In reality, depending on the area of life, it could be you or me. These are the ones who believe a lie and do not acknowledge the truth. There is much truth and it is normal to be ignorant, confused or deceived in various areas of life. Many things I thought were true thirty or forty years ago, I now see to be false.

It is easy to be wise. It is easy until one leaves the nursery and enters the School of Hard Knocks. It is easy to be decisive if one is inexperienced, has narrow vision, lacks love, or thinks only of himself. Things get more difficult when our path of supposed truth ends at a chasm of death, broken relationships, or terrible disappointment. I blush to think of the simplistic, know-it-all opinions I possessed in my early twenties before a real job, before having and raising children, and even before marriage.

Wisdom begins with the fear of the Lord which will give one the humility to listen to opposing opinions. It will lead to us having our ears open to God’s Word and truth wherever we can find it. Amusingly, our natural tendency is to think that those with opposing opinions may get enough fear of the Lord to finally listen to us.

There is hope for me and for those who are young and inexperienced. Scripture tells us that if we will soak up God’s Word and meditate on it then we will become wiser than those who would normally be our teachers (Ps 119:99). We can have wisdom beyond our years and experience IF we fill our minds with God’s Truth and our souls with His Love. We would avoid many painful “experiences” if we sought genuine truth and wisdom as eagerly as we seek money, worldly education or “success”. Let’s admit it. We are inexperienced strangers in this world moving into a future of the unknown.

I am a stranger in the earth: hide not your commandments from me. (Ps 119:19)

Project:
Let’s ask God for more thirst for His Truth, Wisdom and Word.

Pure Water

Your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit [which is] in you.
(1 Corinthians 6:19)

How lightly we pass over this incredible reality that God’s own spirit, life and character has entered into our inmost being. The fact that He indwells us is revealed because our realization of this truth is meant to have an active effect on our decisions, actions and relationships. One's physical body is no longer his but is now a holy temple. Genuine realization of living in and being responsible for a holy temple should affect how we use our body and how we treat it. But, even more than this, we have the privilege of the potential for constant communion with the God whose presence makes the temple holy. We no longer have to go somewhere to meet and worship God. Our pilgrimage into His Presence requires only the split second needed to turn our inner thoughts and gaze toward the Lover of our soul.

This inner Life draws us toward others and gives us the desire to understand, love, and help. Now there is Someone who hates Sin that lives among our inmost thoughts. As we inwardly bow before, submit to and worship our God, the flow of our life will bend into unexpected, scary and wonderful adventures. It is infinitely better to be blown before the wind of the Spirit then to be lured along by wealth, pleasure, popularity or any other temporary treasure of this world. Yet, we are tempted to forget the Fire that burns within us. Instead of the intoxicating and deceptive wine of worldliness, let us of drink from the fountain of pure Living Water that bubbles up from the depths of each our souls.

Whoever drinks of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst; but the water that I shall give him shall be in him a well of water springing up into everlasting life. (John 4) With joy shall you draw water out of the wells of salvation. (Is 12) And whoever will, let him take the water of life freely. (Rev 22)

Project:

• Think about what it means to you personally for your body to be the Temple of the Holy Spirit.
• Ask God to fill and touch every part your life today with the quickening power of His Spirit.
• Commit to daily drink more deeply of the well of the water of Life.
  

I win!

“Are you for us or for our adversaries?” (Joshua 5:13)

A young lady recently came to us for prayer for the relationships in her family. Her husband is depressed and isolating himself and her children are rebelling. Her attempts to bring the family together only seem to make things worse.

In any disagreement, it is natural for each person to believe that his point of view and ideas are right. If we believed our ideas were wrong then we would obviously change them. In any meaningful relationship, there will come points of disagreement and, normally, we will each try to change the other person’s mind. The stronger the personalities involved, the greater the possibility of an adversarial relationship becoming a habit. In our closest relationships, we can forget that we’re on the same team and that if the other person in the relationship is a loser then the whole team loses. We may even ask God to change or defeat the other person. When that doesn’t seem to happen then we may be asking the same question as Joshua, “Are you for us or for our adversaries?”

Our perspective should be totally different. In reality, God has His objectives and purposes which may be much different than those held by the adversaries in a relationship. It is obvious that husband and wife are a team. This is also true of most of our close relationships. If either spouse or party is a loser then the other is also a loser. Our attitude should be one of finding solutions that both parties agree are winners. Many times this can be accomplished only through God’s grace to give us His perspective. When we come to a point of conflict, it is vital to not bulldoze a “solution”, withdraw from the relationship or take the “My way or the highway” attitude. Rather we should bow before the Lord of the Universe and ask, “What has my Lord to say to his servant?” (Joshua 5:14) It may take a little time, but if we take the attitude that there will be no losers on the team and keep seeking God's direction, we will eventually find a solution that is agreeable to both parties. The goal is to find God’s direction because then, “We win.” The thought “I win!”, means I lost.

Some more of the story
A young lady recently came to us for prayer for the relationships in her family. Her husband is depressed and isolating himself and her attempts to bring the family together only seem to make things worse. When I asked her to consider coming to our new group on "The DNA of Relationships" to learn to relate in new ways, she said that they were very happy with the small group they were already in. ??? If we keep doing the same things then we will continue to get the same results. Try something new!

If you sincerely want to improve your relationships, try doing something different. Join us in investigating, “The DNA of Relationships” by Gary Smalley. It has some great insights and ideas that will change your perspective and relationships. We will be hosting a group to do this. If you are interested, please contact us at 903-587-2312 or send an email to gerry@boydproductions.com.

For more information, see http://dnaofrelationships.com/therevolution/whatisit.html.

Frauds and Lovers

Now flee from youthful lusts, and follow righteousness, faith, love, peace and those who call on the Lord from a pure heart. (2 Timothy 2:22)

As I look back at the influential people, things and desires of my younger years. Many of those desires could be classified as youthful lusts. One example is my desire for a sports car. I can still remember reading a book about sports cars and feeling the growing determination to get one (and soon!). And, I made the mistake of doing whatever I had to in order to get one. So, I just piled on more debt and got one. The sizable debt I carried out of college was not because of education costs (they were mostly covered by a scholarship and by summer jobs). No, this burden was created by my wrong choices. Sadly, there are many lusts of youth that still tempt me.

When we think of lust, it seems to automatically connect with raging sexual desires, pornography and moral perversions. But, it can be any controlling fleshly desire, such as fame, fortune, comfort, food, status, excitement or power. When a life is guided and controlled by such a desire, more important things are sacrificed at the altar of that lust. These lusts will inevitably guide us into all kinds of troubles, broken relationships and sorrow.

In contrast to these fraudulent counselors, God calls us, His children, to follow entirely different guides through the wilderness of this life. We are to follow the guidance of “Mr. Do-The-Right-Thing”, “Trust-in-God-for-the-future”, and “Love-that-gives-all”. In contrast to seeking comfort, security or an adrenaline rush, our compass in every decision is to be the Peace of Christ. Our closest companions on this journey should be those who actually trust in the Lord Jesus, call on Him for strength, provision and guidance, and who have thoughts cleansed by His Blood and His Word.

On the horizon, I see some figures waving at me and calling, “Follow me!” Though they start in the same place, these friends and guides are going to entirely different destinations. God’s Word reveals who our guides and companions should be. God has glorious plans for our future. But, each day our personal choices affect the Tomorrow we will actually inherit. Let’s flee from the fraudulent guidance of Lust and PURSUE the Guide who is Lover of our Soul.

Project:

• Seek to know your Lover more by meditating on His Word.
• Determine, by God’s grace, to flee from lust whenever it tempts.
• Ask how you would change yesterday’s decisions if you were more guided by faith, love, peace and doing the “right thing”.
• Take steps to change and head in the right direction today.
  

Jet Propulsion Laboratory

I have a friend who works developing software to help with the analysis and presentation of images from Mars. This site has some of his work and some beautiful images of God's creation.


Jet Propulsion Laboratory

This Year's Motto

This Year's Motto



"Continue in prayer."-Colossians 4:2



It is interesting to remark how large a portion of Sacred Writ is occupied with the subject of prayer, either in furnishing examples, enforcing precepts, or pronouncing promises. We scarcely open the Bible before we read, "Then began men to call upon the name of the Lord;" and just as we are about to close the volume, the "Amen" of an earnest supplication meets our ear. Instances are plentiful. Here we find a wrestling Jacob-there a Daniel who prayed three times a day-and a David who with all his heart called upon his God. On the mountain we see Elias; in the dungeon Paul and Silas. We have multitudes of commands, and myriads of promises. What does this teach us, but the sacred importance and necessity of prayer? We may be certain that whatever God has made prominent in His Word, He intended to be conspicuous in our lives. If He has said much about prayer, it is because He knows we have much need of it.



So deep are our necessities, that until we are in heaven we must not cease to pray. Do you want nothing? Then, I fear you do not know your poverty. Have you no mercy to ask of God?  Then, may the Lord's mercy show you your misery! A prayerless soul is a Christless soul. Prayer is the lisping of the believing infant, the shout of the fighting believer, the requiem of the dying saint falling asleep in Jesus. It is the breath, the watchword, the comfort, the strength, the honour of a Christian. If you be a child of God, you will seek your Father's face, and live in your Father's love. Pray that this year you may be holy, humble, zealous, and patient; have closer communion with Christ, and enter oftener into the banqueting-house of His love. Pray that you may be an example and a blessing unto others, and that you may live more to the glory of your Master. The motto for this year must be, "Continue in prayer."



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         C.H. Spurgeon's Morning and Evening Devotional

                     Sunday January 2, 2005

       http://bible.christiansunite.com/devotionals.shtml

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